Front-band construction for firearms



Jan. 30, 1945. w. c. ROEMER FRONT-BAND CONSTRUCTION FOR FIREARMS Filed Dec. 4, 1941 zfi? *4/ Wye/1% I l/ll" HIV/lam v 67 N w P mm/ 4 Mi 5 z w Patentecl Jan. 30, 1945 FRONT-BAND CONSTRUCTION FOR FIREARMS William C. Roemer, New Haven, Conn., assignor to Western Cartridge Company, New Haven Conn., a corporation of Delaware Application December 4, 1941, Serial No. 421,597

4 Claims.

The present invention relates to improvements in firearms and relates more particularly to improvements in the construction of the frontbands of firearms which serve to couple the forward portion of the stock of a given firearm to a complemental barrel.

The present invention constitutes an improvement upon the front-band construction shown and described in the co-pending application of Ralph E. Clarkson, Ser. No. 422 ,217,-filed December 9, 1941.

One of the objects of the present invention is to provide a superior front-band construction for firearms which will so definitely locate a stock or its equivalent with respect to a barrel as to minimize the charring of the said stock as a result of heat emanating from the said barrel.

A further object of the present invention is to provide a superior front-band construction of the character referred to which may be produced at a low cost for manufacture.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a superior method whereby a reliable, rugged and efiective front-band construction for firearms may be produced from sheet metal and at a lowcost.

With the above and other objects in view, as will appear to those skilled in the art from the present disclosure, this invention includes all features in the said disclosure which are novel over the prior art and which are not claimed in any separate application.

In the accompanying drawing, in which certain modes of carrying out the present invention are shown for illustrative purposes:

Fig. 1 is a broken view in side elevation of the forward portion of a firearm having a frontband construction embodying one form of the present invention;

Fig. 2 is a view thereof mainly in vertical central-longitudinal section;

Fig. 3 is a transverse sectional view taken on the line 3-3 of Fig. 2;

Fig. 4 is a transverse sectional view the line 4-4 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 5 is a perspective view of the front-band unit detached, and viewing the same mainly from the rear;

Fig. 6 is a similar view of the front-band unit, but viewing the same mainly from the front;

Fig. '7 is a perspective view of the locatingband member of the front-band unit detached, and viewed mainly from the rear;

Fig. 8 is a perspective view of body-member detached;

taken I on the frame or Fig. 9 is a perspective view of a partly-formed blank from which the locating-band member may be produced; and

Fig. 10' is a perspective view corresponding to Fig. 6 but showing an alternative construction. The particular firearm-structure herein chosen for purposes of illustrating the present invention in Figs. 1 to 9 inclusive, comprises a barrel I5, a stock I6 extending mainly beneath the said barrel, and a barrel-cover or handguard H extending over the upper portion of the said barrel. The said stock I6 and barrel-cover H are preferably formed of wood or other heat-insulating material.

For the purposes of locating the respective forward portions of the barrel I5, stock I6 and barrel-cover H with respect to each other, and to guard against the undue relative lateral movement thereof, a front-band unit is employed which includes a locating-band member generally designated by the reference character I8 and a frame or body-member generally designated by the reference character I9. The locating-band member I8 includes a cylindrically-contoured forward ring-like portion 20 and a rear hoodlike portion 2|. The said hood-like portion in cludes a substantially-semicircular retaining-lip 22 integral-with and rearwardly projecting from the outer edge of a radially-extending arcuate end-Wa l 23 f r an integ al part of the forward ring-like portion 20.

The forward ring-like portion 20 of the 10-- eating-band member I8 receives with a snug fit the adjacent portion of the barrel I5, and the upper face of the lower reach of the said ringlike portion 20 constitutes an upwardly-facing stop-abutment 24 for purposes as will hereinafter appear. Extending within the hood-like portion 2I of the member I8 and beneath the retaining-lip 22 thereof, is a transversely-curved tenon 25 extending forwardly from the barrelcover I'I. At the junction of its tenon 25 and its main or body-portion, the barrel-cap I1 is formed with a forwardly-facing shoulder 26 against which the rear edge of the retaining-lip 22 of the locating-band member I8 normally abuts.

In the structure of Figs. 1 to- 9 inclusive, the forward ring-like portion 20 of the locatingband member I8 rests upon the depressed cen tral portion of the frame or body-member I9 before referred to, and which portion constitutes a saddle-portion 21. The said saddle-portion is of substantially-semicircular form transversely of the firearm and has its upper face subdownwardly and inwardly to provide comple mental side-arms 2828 respectively embracing the opposite sides of a tenon Z'Q'formed at the forward end of the stock I6. The respective rear edges of the said sidearms 28-28 normally abut against a forwardly-facin shoulder 30 formed.

at the junction of the main portion of the stock I6 and its tenon 28. At the lower end of each of the sidearms 28-28, the body-member I9 isformed with one of two apertured dependingears 3I3I laterally spaced from each other and receiving betweerrthemtheupwardly-extending integral tang 32-of a loop-like strap-swivel 33'.

As is shown particularly well in Fig; 4'; the strap-- swivel 33- is coupled to the -body-member I9 with capacity for pivotal movement in adirection lengthwise of the firearm; by a screw-stud 34 extendinglaterally through the tang 32'. of the said strap-swivel 33- and" through the complementalears-3l3l ofthesaid body-member I9;

Preferably, the locating-bandmem-ber I 8', like the body-member I9; is: formed of sheetmetal. The said locating ba'nd member may be produced by first drawing from sheet-steel or the said stock with the complemental under edges of the: barrel-cover I1. Now, since the tenon 25 1' of the barrel-cover I1 is located beneath the relike a blank like that shown in Fig. 9. The

blankin questionincludes a tubular stem of relatively-small diameter and a tubular body-- portion 35 ofrela-tively-large diameter and 'of complete ring-likeform. Th'e'tubular stem 35 and the tubular body portion, 36 are integrallyunited byan annular radially-extending wall 31.- By means of a suitable trimming operation, substantially half of the body-portion 36- and the'correspondinghalf ofthe end-wall 31 may be'cut away to" transform the partially-formed blank of Fig. 9" into the completed locatingband- I8 shown-particularlywell inFig. 7. cutting operation referred to transforms the stem"35 of-theblankintothe-ring-like portion 28 ofthe-finishedmember and, similarly; respectively transforms the'body-porti'on 36 and the wall 31 of the blank into-theretaining-lip 22 and the end-wall 23 of' the-finishedlocatingbandmember I8; 7

The stock IBiS-formedin its upper'f ace with an' upwardly-openinglongitudinal groove 38 0f substantially-semicircular'form in cross section The and having a transverse shape and dimension suificient to amply-clear'the'under portion of the" barrel I5-to provide "a longitudinalventilation-passage preferably opening through the ex treme forwardend-of' the tenon- 29 of the said stock I6, as is shown particularly well inFig. 2; The said'stock I6- is preferablyso' dimensioned that itsupper edges on each*of= the-respective opposite sidesof the "barrel I5 are located about midway of the vertical thickness of F the" said barrel.

The b'arrelcover orhand-guard' I1 is formed in its' underface witl'ra longitudinal roove 39 of -substantially-semicircular form in cross section' and having a transverse dimension and conformation sufficient to supply alongitudinal ventilation-passage around the upper portion" of the barrel I I and extendingcompletely-through the forward end of the'tenon 25. As willbe It are both prevented from moving upwardly with respect to the front-band unit comprising the parts I8 and I9;

Conversely, the forward portion of the stock I6 is prevented from moving downwardly with respect to the front-band unit by the side-arms 28 -28 of the body-member I 9: and hence also the barrel-cover IT is prevented from moving! downwardly also by' havin'g its respective opposite edgesresting upon therespective. opposite upper edges of the said stock I6.

With the stock I6 and the barrel-cover I! both stabilized against displacement in any lateral direction with respect to the. front-band unit, it now remains to stabilize the said: frontband unit with respect to the barrel I5; in order to insure the substantial avoidance of the charring of either of the said members I5 and II. By extending" a portion of the front-band unit beneath the lower portion of the barrel I5; the

front-bandunit is prevented from upward displacement with respecttothe said barrel while equivalent are prevented from moving upwardly relative to the barrel without requiring that a portionofthe said stock IBor its equivalent be employed as a limiting-means'engaglng=with the said barrel.

In Fig. 10 is shown a,- slig'ht modlfication of the front-band unit of the preceding figures "in which is employed the same locating-band member I8 in conjunction with aframe or bodymember 40- differing slightly in 1 shape from a the frame or body-member HI -previouslydescribed; The said frame or body-member 40- includes complemental side-arms 4 I--4I "corresponding: to the side-arms 28- -2 8 of the body member' I8 and, like the same, provided with perforated depending ears' 42"-4 2 corresponding to the: ears Instead of having its central upper portion depressed, as in the body-member I9, the central portionof the frame-or body-member 48' is arched upwardly to -substantially-semicirculan form to form a saddle43 beneath which tightly fits the forward ring-lik'e'-portion 20 ofithe lo'catingeband member- I8 The locatingmandi-m'ember I8 may be rigidly secured to thelframegor body member 40 in any approved manner such, for instance, as by welding, brazing, or by otherwise securing the ring-like forward portion 2!] of the member 18 to the under face of the saddle 43 of the frame or body-member 4t.

The invention may be, carried out in other specific ways than those herein set forth without departing from the spirit and essential characteristics of the invention, and the present embodiments are, therefore, to be considered-in all respects as illustrative and not restrictive, and all changes coming within the meaning and equivalency range of the appended claims are intended to be embraced therein.

I claim: v

1. A firearm-structure including in combination: a barrel; a stock adjacent the underside of the said barrel in spaced relationship thereto;' a barrel-cover adjacent the upper portion of the said barrel and having the under faces of its respective opposite sides engaged with the upper faces of the respective opposite sides of the said stock; and a front-band unit fitting over the said barrel and also over a portion of the said stock and the said barrel-cover, the said front-band unit comprising a sheet-metal frame-member curved intermediate its respective opposite ends to provide a saddle-portion at its upper end and having opposite side-arms clamping a portion of the said stock, the said front-band unit also including a substantially-tubular locating-band member rigidly secured to the saddle-portion of the said frame-member and fitting over a portion of the said barrel, the said locating-band member being formed with an integral rearwardly-extending retaining-lip engaging with a portion of the said barrel-cover to hold the same in place.

2.. A firearm-structure including in combination: a barrel; a stock adjacent the underside of the said barrel in spaced relationship thereto; a barrel-cover adjacent the upper portion of the said barrel and having the under faces of its respective opposite sides engaged with the upper faces of the respective opposite sides of the said stock; and a front-band unit fitting over the said barrel and also over a portion of the said stock and the said barrel-cover, the said front-band unit comprising a sheet-metal frame-member curved intermediate its respective opposite ends to provide a saddle-portion at its upper end and having opposite side-arms clamping a portion of the said stock, the said front-band unit also including a substantially-tubular locating-band member rigidly secured to the saddle-portion of the said frame-member and fitting over a portion of the-said barrel, the said locating-band member being formed at its rear with an, integral substantially-semicircular radially-extending end wall and with an integral rearwardly-extending substantially-semicircular retaining-lip engaging with a portion of the said barrel-cover to hold the same in place.

3. A firearm-structure including in combination: a barrel; a stock adjacent the underside of the said barrel in spaced relationship thereto; a barrel-cover adjacent the upper portion of the said barrel and having the under faces of its respective opposite faces of the respective opposite sides of the said stock; and a front-band unit fitting over the said barrel and also over a portion of the said stock and the said barrel-cover, the said front-band unit comprising a sheet-metal frame-member curved intermediate its respective opposite ends to provide at its upper end a concave saddle portion and having opposite side-arms clamping a portion of the said stock, the said front-band unit also including a substantially-tubular locating-band member rigidly secured to the concave saddle-portion of the said frame-member and fitting over a portion of the said barrel, the said locating-band member being formed with an integral rearwardly-extending retaining-lip engaging with a portion of the said barrel-cover to hold the same in place.

4. A front-band unit for firearm-structures including in combination: a sheet-metal framemember having two laterally-spaced-apart sidearms shaped to embrace a portion of a firearmstock and having a central upper portion curved to form a saddle-portion; and a separatelyformed locating-band member having a substantially-tubular forward portion rigidly secured to the saddle-portion of the said frame-member, the said locating-band member also including a rearwardly-extending retaining-lip for engagement with a portion of a barrel-cover.

WILLIAM C. ROEMER.

sides engaged with the upper 

